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Local Government Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages

Do you want to become a Local Government Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages? Here is some information to help point you in the right direction:

Job Description - Print Page

A registrar of births, deaths and marriages is the person legally responsible for recording the details of all births, deaths and marriages in an area.

Their main duties are:

• interviewing parents and relatives after a baby has been born or someone has died
• filling out computer and paper records and issuing printouts of certificates
• informing the coroner or procurator fiscal (in Scotland) if there are any suspicious circumstances
• performing civil marriage ceremonies
• collecting statistical information.

Full-time registrars normally work 37 hours a week, although many work part time. The work includes many Saturdays, and some Sundays and bank holidays. They may have to be on call outside these hours. They are based in an office.

The starting salary could be from £16,000, and the highest salaries are around £35,000.

A registrar should be:

• good at talking to people from all different backgrounds
• able to judge whether someone is not telling the truth
• able to organise their own work
• numerate and honest
• genuinely interested in people of all ages from a wide variety of backgrounds.

There are about 1,750 registrars in England and Wales, and 500 in Scotland. In England and Wales registrars are employed by local authorities. In England and Wales, there are no minimum entry requirements, but desirable qualifications are four GCSEs, including English and maths (plus Welsh in Wales). Candidates need experience of dealing with a wide range of people. In Scotland, people need three S grades (1-3) including English.

In England and Wales training is carried out by locally appointed training co-ordinators. In Scotland new entrants may be required to take an exam of the Association of Registrars in Scotland.

In England and Wales promotion prospects are mainly from assistant registrar to registrar or superintendent registrar. In Scotland there are only two grades, assistant registrar and registrar.

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